Wetland Reviews for Municipalities

Determining if a wetland is present on a property — and, moreover, understanding all the potential impacts of a building project — is a complex process that involves a detailed analysis. It’s for this reason that municipalities, wetland commissions or wetland agencies usually turn to either a soil scientist or to a Professional Wetland Scientist (PWS) for help in reviewing complex wetland permit applications.

What to Look for in an Expert

When starting on your journey to selecting an expert, you might be wondering, “What are the most important attributes to consider?” The fact is that you need a combination of several items that include training and extensive expertise in the area of wetlands.

Your expert should be a soil scientist, since under state law, only a soil scientist can determine the exact boundaries of a wetland. Your expert should also be credentialed as a Professional Wetland Scientist (PWS), since these professionals are the only ones fully trained to analyze environmental impacts to wetlands. Your expert should also have some prior work experience as a wetlands officer or wetland agent, since that gives them the best understanding of the municipal process and the regulations. Your expert should also have experience in court proceedings, and be versed in the latest in wetland law, so that any documents produced will be of the highest quality.

Expert Wetland Reviews

A soil scientist and professional wetland scientist can assist municipalities with determining the impact of a potential project, which is information that is required before granting a permit. A variety of needs can be addressed, including:

About the Author

Steven Danzer has over twenty years’ experience in the fields of Wetland and Soil Science, Ecology, and Natural Resource Evaluation. He has always been intrigued by the simple but also perplexing question about whether the landscape before him is healthy or not. This question has propelled him throughout a professional career which has spanned the deserts and mountains of Arizona and the American Southwest to the rocky hills, wetlands, and coastal plains of the East Coast and New England. Contact him at Danzer@ctwetlandsconsulting.com.